"What this country needs is a man-on-the-moon project--an Apollo project--that makes America energy-independent." His policy would involve heavy investments in research and development, subsidies as well as government investments in private companies. "I'm going to ask you to sacrifice to do something constructive for the country."

Energy imports make us vulnerable on a national security level, Richardson said. If countries like Iran, Venezuela and others acted together, they could deliver an oil shock that would make us vulnerable.

Asked about the current situation in Iraq, Richardson said, "I would get out of Iraq by the end of this calendar year. The date would be set by our military commanders."

His comments came Tuesday at the two-day Clean Tech Investor Summit in Palm Desert, Calif.